Interview: Gil Sadeh, Co-Founder & CEO Signals Analytics

What problem does Signals Analytics solve?

There has been an explosion in both data and companies efforts to become more data-driven. However, 90% of the world’s data is unstructured, unconnected and unable to be analyzed by traditional analytics.

Our mission is to give companies a way forward to utilize and understand this data and how it impacts their business, so they can drive a richer more lasting experience and sustain growth.

I don’t like the taste of this pill. I can’t swallow this pill. I can’t open the packaging. I don’t have enough money to pay for my medication. I don’t feel good after taking this medication.

Consumers express concerns about a variety of products in the U.S. and around the world. Yet, how can companies identify, analyze and harness this unstructured data in meaningful ways that actually supports their product development and growth initiatives?

Signals’ technology applies the proven military principles of Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) to machine learning and predictive analytics technologies, to create meaning from unstructured data designed to answer key commercial questions on product portfolio performance and forthcoming market trends and needs.

What’s special about you?

Prior to founding Signals I spent nearly 15 years as a commander of an elite special forces unit in the Israeli Defense Forces.

This is a role where your very survival depends on the quality of your intelligence, and it needs to be current, up-to- date: what are my conditions? How have they changed? Does this affect the time or point of entry? Is this bank transfer a true signal or just noise?

My expertise is truly in transforming random data into intelligence, and mapping it against go or no-go decisions.

Why are you doing this?

Kobi Gershoni and I co-founded Signals with the vision of applying the principles of military intelligence to product portfolio management and corporate innovation.

Together we had over 30 years of training, and we set out to develop a cloud-based platform that detects signals from the noise and provides a unified, always-on system-of- record for product decisions.

Historically, the military has been decades ahead of business in leveraging unconventional approaches that support real-time decision making and result in optimal outcomes.

We saw a unique opportunity with the explosion of unstructured data: there was a need for a new offering that empowers executives to respond to conditions of uncertainty and anticipate a constantly changing marketplace.”

What are some of your other pearls of wisdom?

There is no magic 8 ball when it comes to analytics solutions and data science. Technologies are good, and advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning have the potential to be transformative, but the man plus machine combination is what ultimately delivers value from any system. Think of it as “augmented intelligence.”Any successful data science strategy must start with a foundation in the topic domain, with knowledge of the business challenge that needs to be solved. Then, models and data schemes can be developed, and data collected, but one does not work without the other.

Getting smarter about unstructured is as much about changing how we think about corporate intelligence and decision-making as it is the tools and data. Once we acknowledge that our world has changed – consumers have never been more fickle or empowered, the pace of the market has accelerated, disruption is global and coming from everywhere – decision-makers immediately welcome new ways and tools for thinking about decision-making.

Gil Sadeh — Co-Founder & Chief Executive OfficerPrior to co-founding Signals, Gil served as a military intelligence and reconnaissance consultant for several defense-related governmental entities throughout the world, utilizing his vast experience honed as a commanding officer in an elite special forces unit of the Israel Defense Forces. He is a frequent guest lecturer and editorial contributor on the application of open source and signals intelligence to drive innovation, delight customers and reduce the risk of commercial decision making. Gil holds an LLB and MA in Government, Diplomacy and Strategy from the Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) in Herzliya, Israel.